Book 28 Chapter 9

The Color Demon is coming!

―A chance encounter? Or a trick of fate?

"Haa, haa!"

White breath escaped from between the lips of the young man in white.

It was a clear spring day, and the bright sun was still high in the sky, yet white breath continuously escaped from the pale lips of the young man in white. The trembling young man in white barely turned his head to the side, looking at one person.

"Kuhuk, Eldest Brother! Hurry and escape… Please take revenge…"

With those last words, the young man in white collapsed on the floor.

"My junior discipleeee!"

A heartbroken cry burst from the one called Eldest Brother. The fallen young man in white was covered in white frost as if his entire body had frozen.

"How could this happen!"

He could not believe what had happened.

The pursuit team had been completely annihilated, leaving only him behind.

It was annihilation.

His conviction that there was nothing to fear as long as he was with his junior disciples was shattered. Instead, fear filled his heart.

'How can such demonic martial arts be!'

He never imagined that the Color Demon had already achieved great mastery of that demonic art! It was his greatest mistake not to have even suspected it.

"Hehehehehe, you come here too."

The demon king's white hand, which had defeated the eleventh junior disciple, reached out towards him. An unnervingly pale hand emitted white coldness that froze the air.

'Now, only you are left!'

That hand seemed to say. Ashamed, he had no choice but to admit that he was no match for the other party. It was a clear defeat. He was simply ashamed of his arrogance, which had been so rampant until now.

He reflected and reflected, vowing to be humble and modest from now on. If only his junior disciples could return alive.

But it was spilled milk, and what had happened could not be undone.

He knew now. He had to reflect before regretting to prevent irreversible regret. Tears poured down his eyes like a waterfall. He had no face to see his junior disciples, even if he were to die.

"Aaaaaaaah!"

Revenge that must be accomplished!

To do that, he had to live first. Only by living could he take revenge.

So he turned and fled.

He ran, enduring humiliation. Tears of regret did not stop flowing from his eyes.

* * *

Bilyeon and the rescue team were climbing an unnamed mountain path, disguised as escort guards. Although he wanted to hurry, such a hasty escort would risk attracting unnecessary attention from the public. Therefore, they chose to minimize the number of escort guards and travel at a slightly increased speed compared to a normal escort.

The group was taking the shortest route to Heukcheonmeng, walking on a mountain path that might be a bit rough for ordinary people. Although hastily assembled, the escort guards who joined the mission were all experienced and quite skilled, so there were no significant delays in climbing the mountain. Of course, the rescue team was no exception. What was unusual was that some of the lowest-ranking attendants were riding on a cart carrying the precious cargo. This was an unthinkable situation under normal circumstances, but it was done because those who didn't know martial arts could slow down the escort's speed.

Usually, in such cases, bandits who were ignorant of the ways of the world would emerge from somewhere. However, after crossing one peak, then another, and then a third, the bandits seemed to have disappeared, as not even a trace of them was seen.

Bilyeon, without stopping his steps, continuously looked around and licked his lips.

"Even if you wait eagerly like that, there won't be any bandits, Ryeon."

Jang Hong, who was following behind, suddenly spoke. Bilyeon's gaze naturally turned to him.

"This is a place where one could easily establish one or two bandit hideouts, isn't it? The traffic is quite busy too."

It was a moderately rough and moderately secluded shortcut, which could be called the golden egg of banditry. If the location was this good, it wouldn't be strange to have one or two businesses, but Jang Hong shook his head.

"No matter how good the location is, it's no use if the owner of that location is a tiger. Packs of jackals can only run away with their tails between their legs."

Jang Hong's meaning was that this was the territory of Heukcheonmeng, and they were very displeased to see other riff-raff loitering in their territory.

"Tch, I thought I could earn some pocket money for the first time in a while."

Bilyeon clicked his tongue and muttered to himself. Although he thought he was talking to himself, his voice was loud enough for the members of the Hubei branch of the Huanggong to hear. Cheolsimjang (Iron Heart) Jang Yiha, the head of the Hubei branch of the Jungyang Escort, could not help but be astonished, making his nickname "Iron Heart" seem undeserved.

What kind of nerve did he have to say such things so carelessly? It was a statement as if bandit hideouts were personal emergency vaults scattered throughout the world.

At this moment, one of the escort guards with a slender build walking next to Bilyeon lifted his bamboo hat and looked towards Bilyeon. Despite wearing a shabby escort outfit, the escort guard, whose back view alone captivated the viewer, was none other than Nayelin. The beauty of the women who joined this rescue team was so extraordinary that it risked attracting attention, so they all wore shabby male disguises as escort guards and covered their faces with bamboo hats.

"We're in a hurry now, so bear with it, Ryeon. If you regret it, you can just rob somewhere else later."

The words "rob somewhere else" casually came out of the mouth of Nayelin, praised as the most beautiful woman in the world, leaving the group in unspeakable shock and regret. However, Nayelin seemed unconcerned. Of course, Bilyeon was no exception.

"Ah, what's the point of going through the trouble of robbing hideouts? I just felt like doing it to change my mood because it felt like we were just walking without saying anything."

Don't use catching bandits and robbing hideouts as mood changers!

Jang Yiha had to suppress the strong desire to shout that.

"Hmm, I see."

Nayelin even nodded in agreement, and people were surprised.

Indeed, they felt that Nayelin had changed a bit. It was their common thought that the bad influence of Bilyeon was surely the cause.

"As expected, Yerinn and I get along well. Everyone is too tense. You're too serious. I know the importance of the task, but if you're so tense that you make a mistake at a crucial moment, you shouldn't. In times like these, you need to relax your mind positively."

In fact, the rescue team was suffering from immense pressure. Bilyeon, Yeomdo, and Binggeom were almost unaffected by it. Moreover, silence had the effect of drawing people inward. It was good for deep thought or training, but at times like these, all sorts of thoughts would cross one's mind. Then, by human nature, the mind would be filled with negative thoughts, which was also a tremendous consumption of mental energy. If negative emotions overflowed, one could even fall into despair. They would be defeated before they even acted.

Nayelin, in particular, was a problem. Walking alongside Yeongryeong, she was fighting an immense anxiety internally, though she didn't show it. Wasn't it her father who was in danger right now?

That's why Bilyeon had been constantly trying to distract Nayelin when they left Gangho Randao, so she wouldn't think too deeply about it.

"I wish something a little different would happen…"

That was his honest wish.

Did people attract what they truly desired to themselves? And did the world always give them what they wanted?

However, sometimes it came as an overly generous gift.

Gifts that were difficult to handle were always troublesome and made the recipient awkward.

Bilyeon saw the peculiar group when the escort reached the middle of the mountain pass.

The group consisted of three people at the front and eight people following behind, all wearing black uniforms. Surprisingly, they were all women. And they were remarkably beautiful.

These women, with not a wrinkle on their faces, shone with their unique beauty. Some were elegant, some were gorgeous, some were pure, and some were cute.

Bilyeon's group inwardly paid attention to these beautiful women in black uniforms. This was not simply because they possessed noble beauty, but because they all carried weapons, clearly indicating they were martial artists. Moreover, they all looked quite young, yet also showed the experience of seasoned martial artists.

Especially the three ladies walking at the front, leading the way, exuded a strange sense of pressure. Nayelin, too, tensed up, recognizing their strength at a glance.

'What on earth is the identity of those women? Are there any places besides Geomgak or Amipai that can produce so many female masters in large numbers?'

It was definitely not Amipai or Geomgak. The aura of the three women at the front even outshone Jin Solyeong, the Amigoddess, who was considered the greatest genius of Amipai.

Nayelin's gaze turned to the noblewoman walking at the very front. She was a great beauty with a dignified demeanor and not a single wrinkle on her face, exuding an air of looking down on the entire world.

'And that woman's aura…'

Even from a distance, her skin tingled. This sensation was undoubtedly the formless energy that only supreme masters could emit, and specifically, it was sharp sword energy. To feel formless sword energy from this distance…

'Could she be a female master on the level of my Master?'

She tried to gauge her standing against her master, Geomhu. However, even as a disciple, this was a difficult task.

'How can there be an unknown female master in the martial world who rivals Geomhu?'

If there were, that woman should have made a name for herself in the martial world long ago. However, she had never heard of a peak female master with such an appearance, who also led a group of female masters.

'Who could it be?'

And where were they heading?

For what purpose?

So focused on the women in black uniforms, Nayelin failed to notice the expressions of Binggeom and Yeomdo. If she had looked at their complexions at that moment, even Nayelin, who was described as if carved from Mannyeongbingjeong, would have been shocked.

To such an extent, they wore expressions they rarely showed.

* * *

Compared to the hot-tempered Yeomdo, Binggeom was always calm and composed, and never easily shaken by anything. The efficacy of the Bingbaek Simgyeol he practiced also played a part. Because of this, he was often described as colder than ice.

However, he didn't care about such evaluations. As someone who had inherited Bingpo from his heavenly Master, it was natural for him to be as cold as ice. Even though he had inherited Yeomryeong from his Master, wasn't it a hundred times better than Yeomdo, who was described as "burning scoundrel" due to his fiery and explosive nature, like a blazing flame?

However, his mind and expression, which had always maintained composure, like a still, frozen mirror pond, were now cracked by a huge fissure. His mind was like a lake facing a storm, with turbulent waves surging. And his agitation, no, his turbulence, manifested in his face and actions. The severity was such that he even mimicked the actions of Yeomdo, whom he always bickered with and disliked. This action was clenching both hands into fists and rubbing his eyes vigorously with those hands.

As if to confirm whether what he saw was real or fake, or if he was hallucinating.

But the world was cruel, and the "reality" they were seeing never disappeared. Then, both Yeomdo and Binggeom felt a slight urge to ignore reality.

Ignoring reality was simple. Pretend not to see what you see, not hear what you hear, and ultimately, don't acknowledge it.

Yes, life becomes much easier if you cut off unnecessary attention. Such a life wasn't bad. If being prey for others was one's destiny, it was better to have a peaceful mind until just before being eaten.

If there are those who stop and regress, there must be those who progress forward. Such tearful self-sacrifice for the progress of others was not bad either.

So he didn't see it. He really didn't see it, really, really…

"Hot!"

Yeomdo and Binggeom suddenly snapped back to their senses.

They barely managed to stop their minds from drifting into eternity with sheer willpower.

What could have dealt such a mental blow to these two world-renowned supreme masters? What had they seen to be so astonished?

Their gazes were directed towards the three ladies leading the peculiar women.

Strangely, two of the women had fiery red hair and deep cyan hair like the depths of a winter lake, as if Yeomdo and Binggeom had been reincarnated as women. Although both women were strikingly beautiful even apart from their hair color, Yeomdo and Binggeom's gazes did not linger on them for long. As if indifferent to such unique women, their gazes were fixed on the black-haired woman in front, dressed in clothes as dark as the dead of night.

The two looked at each other.

"……"

Although silent, their unspoken message was clear.

'Is what I'm seeing accurate?'

'You're not thinking what I'm thinking, are you?'

'Tell me I saw wrong. Please scold me, tell me I saw wrong. My eyes have a serious illness and I'm hallucinating. Just this once, I'll allow you to scold me. This is your only chance to scold me legally!'

'I want to do that too. Do you think I don't want to scold you? I welcome it not once, but a million times! But before that, I have a favor to ask. You first, you first, deny what I saw. Then I will also give you the opportunity to scold me! I don't mind scolding you twice!'

However, no one seized this rare opportunity to scold their lifelong adversaries. That meant, despairingly, that what they were seeing was the truth.

The next moment, as if by agreement, they pulled their bamboo hats down low, turned their heads away from the women, and silently hid their bodies next to the precious cargo using a ghostly stealth technique.

Even the people next to them did not notice their sudden movement.

And, they prayed silently at the same time.

Please, may that person not discover them.

Please, may it not be revealed that this escort is the rescue team for the Sect Leader of Jeongcheon.

Because they absolutely did not want to see their beloved students annihilated, they continued on the mountain path without relaxing their guard.

Jang Hong, who was walking alongside them, secretly marveled at how skilled the two masters, Musa-bu, were at stealth. However, a question lingered in his mind.

'Why are these two, who fear nothing in the world, acting like this all of a sudden?'

Jang Hong could not help but be bewildered.

"Hurry up with the escort. We need to leave this place immediately."

At that moment, Binggeom's telepathic message heavily struck the eardrums of Cheolsimjang Jang Yiha. The intensity of it made Jang Yiha feel as if his heart was freezing, giving him a chilling sensation. There was an urgency contained within it.

"Keep your eyes forward! No one look back! If you look back, you die by my hand! Keep moving forward! Only think about getting out of here!"

Yeomdo's telepathic message reverberated throughout the entire escort. The 'multi-telepathic' technique, capable of sending messages to multiple people at once, was a miraculous technique that could never be accomplished with ordinary internal energy, but there was no time to idly admire such things now.

The escort's speed gradually increased.

Although they didn't run for fear of appearing suspicious with such a hasty escape, with every step they took, the escort moved forward swiftly. Still, it was incredibly frustrating that Yeomdo and Binggeom could not fully deploy their Qinggong. As soon as they were out of the women's sight, they planned to escape at full speed.

However, even though the escort's speed had increased threefold, the distance between them and the women in black uniforms did not widen; it remained constant. It was clear that the women were also increasing their speed to match theirs. As if they absolutely would not yield the lead.

As if silently shouting, 'How dare you try to overtake us, you insolent fools!'

A peculiar companionship continued in silence, with neither side speaking a word. Although both sides remained silent, it was clear that neither had any intention of yielding.

Despite the suffocating tension and pressure, none of the rescue team members spoke a word. Yeomdo and Binggeom repeatedly urged the group through telepathic messages. To go faster. But if they went any faster, the only option left was to run. An escort running at full speed without any bandits, wouldn't that be too suspicious?

Jang Hong carefully observed Yeomdo and Binggeom, who were urging them on. And then he was surprised.

'That kind of expression…'

The emotion revealed by these two was clearly 'fear'.

'Why, though?'

What was it that made these two so afraid?

Then, the two groups, who were in a silent race without allowing anyone to overtake, suddenly stopped.

It was not a person who made them stop simultaneously.

It was three swords stuck in the middle of the mountain pass road.